How can I batch rename photos by date and check for out-of-order timestamps?

Question

I have a large set of image files with camera-style names like DSCF0001, DSCF0002, etc. I want to rename them using their dates, but sometimes the filename sequence does not match the file's modified date. For example, DSCF0020 might have a later modified date than DSCF0021.

I’m looking for a tool or workflow that can:
1. batch rename photos using date information,
2. help me spot cases where filename order and date order do not match, and
3. let me decide how to handle those mismatches.

Also, why does this happen? Is the file modified date unreliable compared to the original capture date?

user97853 · Answer

I'll assume that "filenames with modified dates 2020/01/01" refers to the filesystem timestamps, and not the EXIF data.

As others have and will point out, this is difficult to maintain (e.g. every time you edit the EXIF data, the file's change date will become wrong).

But if all you want is something to provide a quick check as to whether the files are consistently dated, say just before you use the timestamps to set the EXIF dates, this will do the trick.

If you have access to a bash shell and the ls command (e.g. as on Linux systems):

$ ls -ltr
-rw-rw-r-- 1 ray ray 0 Jan 19  2020 DSCF0019
-rw-rw-r-- 1 ray ray 0 Jan 20  2020 DSCF0021
-rw-rw-r-- 1 ray ray 0 Jan 21  2020 DSCF0020
-rw-rw-r-- 1 ray ray 0 Jan 22  2020 DSCF0022

$ ls
DSCF0019  DSCF0020  DSCF0021  DSCF0022

$ ls -tr
DSCF0019  DSCF0021  DSCF0020  DSCF0022

$ diff <(ls -tr) <(ls)
2d1
< DSCF0021
3a3
> DSCF0021

The ls command lists the files sorted by name.

The ls -tr command lists the files sorted by change date (-r means oldest first).

The diff command compares the two results and displays what is different.

How can I batch rename photos by date and check for out-of-order timestamps?

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